The 10 Commandments of Self Improvement
with David Riklan
Summary of “The Ten Commandments of Self Improvement” -by
David Riklan
What does it really take to change your life? Let me begin by
giving you a little background. Here are some guidelines, what I
like to call the pre-commandments of Self Improvement:
--- There is no single book, tape, seminar, expert or system that
will work equally well for everybody.
--- There is no master plan for everybody. We are all unique.
--- There is no panacea (a remedy for all diseases, evils or
difficulties; a cure-all).
--- There are many people with products and information that can
help you.
--- There are a lot of books, tapes and programs out there that
will provide you with very little benefit.
((( To listen online, go to
http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))
Now let me share with you some ideas that I believe will stick with
you throughout your time as a Self Improvement seeker.
The following are ten steps or 'commandments' you can use as you
scan the aisles, check the websites and read the books trying to
improve
your life. For each of these ten “commandments,' I have included
quotes that support that belief from a variety of experts in the
field of Self Improvement and beyond.
You are probably familiar with many of these 'commandments.' If
you are, please look at these as a refresher course to remind you
of the basics. The “Ten Commandments of Self Improvement” are
as
follows:
#1: Thou Shalt Take Responsibility for Your Life
Dr. Phil McGraw: 'Life Law: You Create Your Own Experience.
Acknowledge and Accept Responsibility for your life'
Stephen Covey: 'Taking initiative does not mean being pushy,
obnoxious, or aggressive. It does mean recognizing our
responsibility to make things happen.'
Les Brown: 'Accept responsibility for your life. Know that it is
you who will get you where you want to go, no one else.'
Denis Waitley: 'There are two primary choices in life: to accept
conditions as they exist, or accept the responsibility for changing
them.'
((( To listen online, go to
http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))
#2: Thou Shalt Take Action
Dr. Phil McGraw: 'Life Rewards Action. Make Careful Decisions'
Tony Robbins: 'Take massive action.'
Dale Carnegie: “The man who goes farthest is generally the one
who
is willing to do and dare. The sure-thing boat never gets far from
shore.”
Jack Canfield: 'Everything you want is out there waiting for you to
ask. Everything you want also wants you. But you have to take
action to get it.'
((( To listen online, go to
http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))
#3: Thou Shalt Have Desire
Napoleon Hill: “Desire is the starting point of all achievement.”
Muhammad Ali: 'Champions aren't made in the gyms. Champions
are
made from something they have deep inside them--a desire, a
dream,
a vision.'
Mario Andretti: 'Desire is the key to motivation, but it's the
determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your
goal--a commitment to excellence--that will enable you to attain
the success you seek.'
Earl Nightingale: 'The key that unlocks energy is 'Desire.' It's
also the key to a long and interesting life. If we expect to
create any drive, any real force within ourselves, we have to get
excited.'
((( To listen online, go to
http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))
#4: Thou Shall Set Goals
Tony Robbins: “Setting goals is the first step in turning the
invisible into the visible.”
Aristotle: “First, have a definite, clear practical ideal; a goal,
an objective. Second, have the necessary means to achieve your
ends; wisdom, money, materials, and methods. Third, adjust all
your means to that end.”
Maxwell Maltz: “People who say that life is not worthwhile are
really saying that they themselves have no personal goals which
are
worthwhile. Get yourself a goal worth working for. Better still,
get yourself a project. Always have something ahead of you to
'look forward to'--to work for and hope for.”
Brian Tracy: 'Every single life only becomes great when the
individual sets upon a goal or goals which they really believe in,
which they can really commit themselves to, which they can put
their whole heart and soul into.'
Zig Ziglar': 'A goal properly set is halfway reached.'
((( To listen online, go to
http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))
#5: Thou Shalt Create a Plan
Unknown: “If You Fail to Plan, You Plan to Fail.”
Napoleon Hill: “When defeat comes, accept it as a signal that your
plans are not sound, rebuild those plans, and set sail once more
toward your coveted goal.”
Mark Victor Hansen: “The majority of people meet with failure
because they lack the persistence to create new plans to take the
place of failed plans.”
((( To listen online, go to
http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))
#6: Thou Shalt Pay the Price
Vince Lombardi: 'The price of success is hard work, dedication to
the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose,
we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.”
Orison Swett Marden: “Success is the child of drudgery and
perseverance. It cannot be coaxed or bribed; pay the price and it
is yours.”
((( To listen online, go to
http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))
#7: Thou Shalt Have Persistence springboard yourself to success.

Calvin Coolidge: 'Nothing in the world can take the place of Are these the only commandments? Absolutely not.
persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than
unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius Can you improve your life without using these? Yes, but it's not
is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of easy.
educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are
omnipotent.'

Orison Swett Marden: 'There is genius in persistence. It conquers

all opposers. It gives confidence. It annihilates obstacles.
Everybody believes in a determined man. People know that when
he
undertakes a thing, the battle is half won, for his rule is to
accomplish whatever he sets out to do.'

((( To listen online, go to

http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))

#8: Thou Shalt Believe

Denis Waitley: 'If you believe you can, you probably can. If you
believe you won't, you most assuredly won't. Belief is the
ignition switch that gets you off the launching pad.'

Anthony Robbins: 'If you develop the absolute sense of certainty

that powerful beliefs provide, then you can get yourself to
accomplish virtually anything.'

Maxwell Maltz: “Realizing that our actions, feelings and behavior

are the result of our own images and beliefs gives us the level
that psychology has always needed for changing personality.”

David J. Schwartz: 'The size of your success is determined by the

size of your belief. Think little goals and expect little
achievements. Think big goals and win big success. Remember
this,
too! Big ideas and big plans are often easier--certainly no more
difficult--than small ideas and small plans.'

((( To listen online, go to

http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))

#9: Thou Shalt Learn From Thy Mistakes

Winston Churchill: “All men make mistakes, but only wise men learn
from their mistakes.”

Oprah Winfrey: “There are no failures, only lessons to be learned.”

John Sculley: “I have found that I always learn more from my

mistakes than from my successes. If you aren't making some
mistakes, you aren't taking enough chances.”

((( To listen online, go to

http://www.selfgrowth.com/commandments.html )))

#10: Thou Shalt Create A Clear Picture of Your Future and

Visualize It

Earl Nightingale: “Picture yourself in your minds eye as having

already achieved this goal. See yourself doing the things you'll
be doing when you've reached your goal.”

Stephen Covey: “Create a clear, mutual understanding of what

needs
to be accomplished, focusing on what, not how; results not
methods.
Spend time. Be patient. Visualize the desired result.”

Robert L Schwartz: 'The entrepreneur is essentially a visualizer

and an actualizer. He can visualize something, and when visualizes
it he sees exactly how to make it happen.'

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These Ten Commandments of Success are designed to enable you

to